Why Risk & Actuarial

We live in a risky world, and people and businesses are increasingly aware of the need to manage risk. Businesses in all industries – particularly financial services – strive to manage their risk to ensure their success.

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With an actuarial studies qualification, you could be the expert companies (including banks, insurers and consulting firms) turn to when they need to understand risk and meet their customer needs. Study risk management to better understand business risk and its many aspects.

Actuarial studies focuses on risk modelling and management, particularly for insurers and superannuation funds. Actuarial graduates are employed by a variety of organisations in pricing and modelling risk. Businesses rely on risk management experts to help them protect and create value for their stakeholders. It’s a challenging, yet very satisfying career.

Why study risk & actuarial studies at the Business School?

The School of Risk & Actuarial Studies, UNSW Australia Business School offers an undergraduate Bachelor of Actuarial Studies as well as a Masters of Actuarial Studies. The undergraduate degree can be combined with other commerce and business disciplines and also with some science disciplines, including mathematics and statistics. These program options provide a highly valued and broad based education as well as exemptions from the actuarial profession examinations.

The Master of Actuarial Studies, and extension, covers the professional actuarial courses up to Associate Actuary level and is designed for graduates from with a string mathematics or quantitative finance background. It also provides the Part II and more advanced Risk Management courses covering the CERA syllabus for actuarial graduates. Both are available for full and part time students.

The School also offers courses in Superannuation in both actuarial and economics programs.

What does risk and actuarial studies cover?

Are you interested in applying your mathematics and statistics skills in a rewarding business career? By undertaking actuarial studies, you’ll draw on your problem solving, reasoning and well-rounded business skills to manage risk.

You’ll discover:

Models used to quantify and manage risks including financial and insurance risks

Actuarial studies at UNSW combine professional actuarial courses with a wide range of other relevant disciplines. In fact, you can choose from the widest mix of majors and combined degrees on offer at an Australian university.

Couple a course with:

Accounting

Finance

Economics

International business

Business law

Information systems

Marketing

Human resource management

Mathematics and statistics

You can study risk and actuarial studies programs at undergraduate, Masters or PhD level. Our teaching program is founded on an excellent research culture, ensuring courses take account the latest developments in the field.

You’ll graduate with specialist skills to apply in a variety of insurance, superannuation, funds management, banking and consulting roles.

"We have a strong PhD program in the School with excellent students."

Michael Sherris

Associate Head of School

Why study risk management at the Business School?

The School of Risk & Actuarial Studies, offers a Masters of Risk Management & a Master of Commerce (Risk Management). Both are available as full-time or part-time study programs.

The programs provide foundation knowledge for an enterprise risk management framework within an organisation including management, legal and information technology and a range of electives are offered that allow students flexibility to develop their specialist skills in the context of best risk management practices. These electives include the CERA courses suitable for actuarial graduates as well as business risk related courses for students with a business undergraduate degree.

Teaching and learning environment

The School of Risk and Actuarial Studies is committed to providing a learning environment that supports students.

The School's programs and degrees consistently attract the brightest students, both domestically and internationally, providing a high quality group of fellow students.

Academic staff innovations and the teaching evaluation process lead to course and program improvements aimed at supporting student learning.

The Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) is a highly successful program, which provides additional peer support to first year students in the undergraduate program.

Additional learning and language support is available from the Education Development Unit (EDU) in the Business School. The EDU provides individual and small group consultations, academic skills workshops, discipline-specific support workshops and a range of study skills resources, materials and handouts.